Johnson Officials Say No to Asylum Ghost Hunt
By Gregg Hennigan, The Gazette, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Apr. 10–IOWA CITY — Johnson County won’t be calling any ghostbusters out to the county Poor Farm and Asylum.
At a work session Wednesday, Johnson supervisors said they no longer had any interest in a proposal to allow a “paranormal investigation” at the site. Opposition to the idea from the public was strong, they said.
“I guess I was kind of surprised with the reaction it drew, the amount of reaction,” supervisor Larry Meyers said. The Carroll Area Paranormal Team wanted to inspect the site — west of Iowa City on Melrose Avenue — for ghosts using thermal imaging cameras, voice recording systems and other equipment.
Late last month, officials from the Johnson County Historical Society brought that request to the supervisors, who gave the go-ahead to gather more information in anticipation of a formal vote that will not happen now.
“Since that point in time, we have received several fairly strongly worded e-mails asking us not to do this,” supervisors Chairman Rod Sullivan said.
Supervisors also said they wanted to respect the wishes of the Chatham Oaks board of directors, which objected to the ghost hunt. Chatham Oaks, which is on the original Poor Farm lot, is a residential care facility for about 80 people with chronic mental illness.
There never have been any reports of paranormal activity at the Poor Farm, which dates to the 1850s, according to the Historical Society, which manages the site.
“You’re building an issue where there really isn’t one,” Supervisor Pat Harney said of allowing the investigation.
Though the supervisors and the Historical Society have taken some hits since the idea was first proposed, there also have been some benefits. Shaner Magalhaes, executive director of the Historical Society, said interest in the Poor Farm has spiked in the last couple of weeks, with tour requests coming from across Iowa and outside the state.
Stories about the proposed ghost hunt ran in newspapers nationwide. Magalhaes said he even heard from ABC News last week and was told they were tracking the story.
“We could have put out a thousand (news) releases about the Poor Farm and not” have generated this much interest, he said.
Contact the writer: (319) 339-3175 or gregg.hennigan@ gazettecommunications.com
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